HT201328: How to unlock your iPhone for use with another carrier

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philrunclimb
Level 1 (8 points)

Q: Network can lock iphones bought from Apple??

Ok - I have never heard of this before ...but it's arisen twice this Christmas!!

 

HOW can phone service providers LOCK an iphone to their network ..when the iphone has been bought direct from Apple with NO contract attached???

 

I'll explain very carefully what happened to me:

 

In Feb 2012 I bought an iphone4 for £522 inc VAT from Apple. Direct. I still have the receipt and original box. NO contract.

I went to Vodafone UK and bought a monthly sim-only deal. And I used the phone on Vodafone for  three years.

(ps:  iphone4 was rubbish - phone reception poor and 3G patchy - my wife's iphone3S was better)

 

In December 2014 I decided to upgrade to an iphone6 and move provider to EE.

Again I bought an iphone for cash direct from Apple £610. No contract.

Contacted Carphone Warehouse and they sent me an EE nano sim card.

During the set up process (inserting EE nano sim and running itunes etc) it eventually said the phone was set up and working - and was now locked to EE, and would need to be released by them before a different sim would work in it.  I was surprised by this message.

WEIRD

 

THEN... I gave my old iphone4 (above) to my teenage grandson... but when he put a Tesco micro sim in, it would not work. Tesco mobile said the phone showed as being LOCKED to Vodafone.

Obviously I thought they were mistaken.  We tried another micro sim - would not work.

I called Apple - they said they still had a record of the original purchase and no way the phone should be locked.

I called Vodafone - and they confirmed I'd only had a sim-only contract with ten, so the phone should not be locked.

 

I was stumped - and the iphone4 could not be used on Tesco.  .....

 

SO... I asked Vodafone IN THEORY could they try unlocking it for me.

 

They put me into their unlocking paged on their website... I entered the IMEI number and waited a few days

Two days later I got an email saying they did not have the phone's code on their system and would be contacting the manufacturer.

One more day and they said it was done and unlocked and all I needed to do was restore the phone vis itunes.

 

I plugged the iphone4 into my Mac and restored it through itunes and VOILA - it now works witht he TESCO sim and all is well.

Clearly it had been locked to Vodafone and they were able to unlock it - even though I can prove I bought it direct from Apple.

 

 

SO HOW DID THIS HAPPEN... ????

 

Any ideas?

 

P

 

(ps: the iphone6 is awesome on EE - I live Bristol area UK, and get great coverage including superfast 4G even inside office block)

iPhone 4

Posted on Jan 11, 2015 4:40 AM

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philrunclimb

Q: Network can lock iphones bought from Apple??

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  • Helpful answers

  • by wegras,

    wegras wegras Jan 11, 2015 5:10 AM in response to philrunclimb
    Level 6 (15,184 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 11, 2015 5:10 AM in response to philrunclimb
    SO HOW DID THIS HAPPEN... ????

    Carphone warehouse will be something (everything ) to do with it

    an iPhone purchased direct from Apple in UK is NOT locked to any carrier and never will become locked

    If you buy an iPhone from CPW as unlocked ie not on contract, it wil  indeed be unlocked and sama price as from  Apple

    However the iPhone will then lock to the first sim that is inserted some stunt they pull and have been doing it for years

    It would appear from your story CPW have found a way to lockthe iPhone  when they sell a sim only contract although I cannot think how

  • by philrunclimb,

    philrunclimb philrunclimb Jan 11, 2015 11:58 PM in response to wegras
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Jan 11, 2015 11:58 PM in response to wegras

    Thanks for responding ...but NO...    BOTH iphones were bought direct from Apple by me. It's only the sim card for the iphone6 that came from Carphone Warehouse.  The Voda sim card for the iphone4 came from the local Vodafone shop (not Carphone Warehouse). I wonder if somehow the sim cards can do what you say and somehow lock the phone to their network. Without asking me, and without Apple's knowledge? Or maybe with Apple's knowledge.

     

    It seems wrong. Given that in each case I have chosen to buy the hardware direct and then select a network...partly so I can change network any time I want.

     

    P

  • by wegras,

    wegras wegras Jan 12, 2015 3:27 AM in response to philrunclimb
    Level 6 (15,184 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 12, 2015 3:27 AM in response to philrunclimb
    It would appear from your story CPW have found a way to lockthe iPhone  when they sell a sim only contract although I cannot think how

    I fully realise you purchased the iPhones from Apple

    there is no way a UK iPhone will lock to a carrier UNLESS it is purchased from CPW or it is purchased from a carrier at a subsidised price

    Apple purchased iPhones, certainly do not lock to any network ever

    Apple have nothing to do with locking to a carrier nor is it of any interest .They provide a database which holds records of all iPhones and their status

    is locked or unlocked at Carriers insistance

    The carrier and CPW activate the lock at point of sale directly to the database and if they later agree to unlock, the serial # is released and you then

    restore as new and the activation server releases the lock on the iPhone and it then works with any carrier

  • by lonnnie,

    lonnnie lonnnie Jan 12, 2016 2:51 PM in response to wegras
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 12, 2016 2:51 PM in response to wegras

    I'm afraid you're wrong.

     

    In my experience, all the iPhones I have ever bought (4, 5 & 6) direct from the Apple store in the UK become locked to the network I use - EE.

     

    It's a real pain in the backside when I want to hand the phones down to someone on another carrier as it costs me £8.99 each time - and I have to wait 10 days for the unlock too! I've logged three requests in the last week so I can move three phones in the household from EE to another network but it gripes when you think you're getting an 'unlocked' phone from Apple!

     

    How can this be allowed as EE hasn't subsided my phone one iota!!

  • by wegras,

    wegras wegras Jan 13, 2016 12:59 PM in response to lonnnie
    Level 6 (15,184 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 13, 2016 12:59 PM in response to lonnnie

    so if you are so upset why did you not return each iPhone to the Apple store and complain at the time

  • by lonnnie,

    lonnnie lonnnie Jan 13, 2016 1:51 PM in response to wegras
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 13, 2016 1:51 PM in response to wegras

    Over an hour away from my nearest apple store!

    Struggle to get genius bar appointments!

    Don't want to wait around in store in the hope of getting a slot (1hr last time)!

    Assumption that Apple will blame EE (EE state is a 'feature' of iPhones)!

    More important things to do with my time!

     

    That should be enough for starters

     

    The point I was making is the statement that iPhones bought from Apple CAN be locked to a network - as I have much experience of it with EE. I don't know about other carriers in the UK as I haven't used them with iPhones.

     

    I'll continue to buy from Apple stores as I don't want to be tied to a carrier and think its the most cost effective way of getting the phone. I just don't want people thinking their phone definitely wont need unlocking if they change carriers in the UK.

  • by kamillafrombournemouth,

    kamillafrombournemouth kamillafrombournemouth Jan 30, 2016 2:10 AM in response to lonnnie
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 30, 2016 2:10 AM in response to lonnnie

    Hey, i have the same problem. But mine goes even further.

     

    I Bought my iPhone on eBay. The guy said, it was a company phone and they bought it originally from Apple and it only works with EE. So I bought an EE SIM card and topped up with £8.99 and completed the online process for the unlocking twice. i was unsuccessful both times and got a message to contact customer services at EE. Which I did, and told me to go to the store, which I did... And they told me to phone customer services.... I was quite angry at this time.... So phoned Customer services again, and she basically told me that they can only unlock the phone if it has been bought from an EE shop directly. I know now that the phone has been bought from Apple, what shall I do?

  • by imobl,

    imobl imobl Jan 30, 2016 7:21 AM in response to kamillafrombournemouth
    Level 5 (6,905 points)
    iPhone
    Jan 30, 2016 7:21 AM in response to kamillafrombournemouth

    What does it say when you look at Settings>General>About>Carrier?

    You may have to scroll to see the entry for Carrier.

     

    If the iPhone is locked to EE, only EE can unlock it. Go back to an EE

    corporate store - not an kiosk run by some affiliate - and escalate the

    problem until you get a resolution.